Malicious Compliance Chapter Thirteen

A large part of Edward—a very large, throbbing part—wanted to give in to his urges. Being domestic with Bella brought back those good memories he'd long since buried. What he once thought could only be a physical relationship, full of quickies and no substance, had grown into much more. Edward had missed her, there was no denying that. If he put thoughts of Bella to the back of his mind, he could live his life without her. Perhaps it would be difficult. Maybe he would only be lying to himself that he was fully happy, but he could have a complete life without Bella Swan. He'd done it once and he could do it again.

Malicious Compliance Chapter Twelve

Feeling numb for the remainder of the dinner rush, Bella tried her best to block out the sound of their grating voices. Tanya and Vicky's reputations for being ruthless gossips had made them a large circle of fake friends, and Bella was more than happy to be excluded. No one needed friends who were prepared to stab them in the back at the slightest provocation just because it meant getting ahead by a tiny inch. Bella had a job to do, and she was damn good at it. Still, by the time the dinner crowd left, she had to sit in the break room and lower her head between her knees.

Malicious Compliance Chapter Eleven

Between Bella and Austin, they’d rescheduled the meeting with Seth for the evening so Edward could be there. Bella wasn't sure how she felt about his revelation from the night before. Not that he was better off financially, or even that he’d kept it from her.

Malicious Compliance Chapter Ten

Alice was . . . an entity of her own. She was cute, knowledgeable, and not afraid to make fun of herself. Bella thought Alice and Jasper would make a great couple, but that would require Jasper to stop putting his dick in every woman who glanced his way.